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Multimeter power switch mod

I got this cheap digital multimeter for quit some time now ,and the most noticeable problem with it is that every time i need to turn it Off or On i had to turn the selector switch all the way around and that is difficult , especially with one hand. so its time for my cheap digital Multimeter to get a power switch .

As you can see , a DT830D it’s just another cheap digital multimeter that works great for the moments ,but for me its not enough because adding a power switch is just the beginning for a batch of a digital multimeter modding posts

Well, you get what you pay for , a crappy multimeter , i have no idea why it still working it’s almost a 2 years now .

Anyway what we gonna do is making a square hole in the less crowded side and glue a power switch in it witch i’v salvaged form an old PC front panel , then i will desolder the red wire (+) of the 9v battery and solder the power switch in series with it.

The small push on push off power switch I took from the PC front panel , turned later to be a push button, fortunately i had another one with same size , so if you gonna glue a plastic switch directly make sure you got the right one.

Any small power switch would be usable , just make sure you bend the pins or tape them so they won’t touch the PCB or the rotary switch.

For the hole i just marked a square on the side with the same dimensions as the switch ,and with a soldering iron i retraced the drawing until i got close to the final shape . the smaller the soldering iron tip the better, it will release less smoke and it should be faster.

I used a sharp knife to remove the excess plastic , and to make the edges straight i gave it a couple passes of a metal file .

I chamfered the edges to give room for the hot glue but i used super-glue instead ,so i end up with an ugly square hole.

Some pictures of the piece that holds the switch glued in place :

After the glue dried i put some tape on the power switch pins then i assembles everything together , i removed the red wire from its pad an i soldered it with one pin of the power switch then i soldered the other pin’s wire with the power (+) pad , and i wrapped it with some tape than i hold it in place withe fuse .

Finale word ,it worth it , the power switch works nicely and now i can turn it on and off with one hand